Where do I start? This was a much anticipated and well planned out family vacation. We have cruised numerous times before on most all of the major lines. This was to say the least, the worst experience we have had. Save yourself the vacation time and hard earned money and choose something else. Carnival couldn't get me back on one of their ships for free! With that said let me explain why. Embarkation: This went fairly well. The lines were very long and FULL of groups of every kind wearing like t-shirts that left you feeling like one in a huge herd of cattle. Once onboard, we went to our cabins to wait on luggage which didn't arrive until late that evening.The cabin was large enough relatively speaking to other cabins we've had. It lacked some of the "nice" classy touches we experienced on RC. The balcony left some to be desired since the door was a push out door that you had to step up to get out. The door slams behind you and the balcony barely has room to turn around on. (Note RC balconies have them beat hands down. They are sliding glass doors and the glass is always sparkling clean. You can open them and hear the ocean and feel the breeze in your room.) There is a note telling you to keep Carnival's balcony door closed to "save on air conditioning" ha! We Spent $6000.00 to USE the balcony and I decided I would prop it open to get to enjoy the ocean. Well, the room thermostat is set so that you cannot get it any colder than about 80 degrees whether the door is open or not so that just made it worse. I closed the door. :( and still was not cool enough. Also in the room is a sofa that allows them to store linens under if that needs to be used as a bed. The linens were literally wadded up and stuffed in the drawer beneath for our use! Yuck! looked as if they had already been used. We also found several articles under our bed that were from past guests...again,yuck! Our cabin steward was no where to be found that first day and showed up that evening and had sort of a chip on his shoulder? and a sarcastic "humor" to him which we found offensive. If you don't want to serve the public..don't be a cabin steward! Ah! Dinner in the Washington room was not the experience we had hoped for either. Our Head waiter was already serving the other family at our table when we arrived 10 minutes late (remember we had no luggage yet and were hoping it would come). He NEVER in 7 days greeted us and NEVER even introduced himself nor his help staff?? Odd! He simply said nothing and handed us menus. When it was time to place the order he just stood beside you and let you carry the conversation. Boo The food was pretty good but not as exciting nor tasty again as RCaribbean. It usually was luke warm and I have a thing for food being the temperature intended. The staff in no way made you feel special or pampered. Just your typical fast food drive up mentality. As for the ship, It had some very pretty aspects to it. I liked the decor in most areas. I realize it was based on an American theme and they made good choices in some areas and in others not so good. ROsies (the buffet dining) was my least favorite. It felt like and looked like a Shoney's restaurant. Nothing like paying all that money to come to a "diner" on vacation for every meal. The buffet times seemed to elude us the entire week. It was NEVER open when we were hungry. The set up just made no sense. You walk and walk and walk to get the things you want on your plate and then the drinks might as well be on the moon because you aren't getting one with ease. When you do get to the "drink station" all they offered were coffee mugs to drink out of. So..yes, if you like more than a thimble full of drink you won't be satisfied on this ship. Of course it is HOT in the caribbean and don't expect to get yourself a nice drink from the restaurant and take it out to the pool because you'll be through drinking it before you find a seat and then have to start all over again. OF COURSE, they have TONS AND TONS AND TONS of waiters on staff for you to "BUY" a drink anytime you want. Infact they were very annoying as they walked by you repeatedly asking you if you want to buy a drink. We counted a guy came by and ASKED us that no less than 25 times in a 2 hour sitting! We found this true with EVERYTHING CARNIVAL offered its guests... if you want to throw some more money away they are more than happy to take it...if you just want to enjoy what you already paid for..good luck.

The pool areas were acceptable. Nothing spectacular or even relaxing. They were crowded and felt dirty. One highlight...the super slide! We loved that. The line was long but worth waiting for. Entertainment: Well, this is just another area we felt left us wishing we had sailed with Royal Caribbean. Royal Caribbean shows are always first class and tasteful! Carnivals started out ok and we thought they were going to be fine until we found our family of 5 (kids,12,16,18) having to stand up mid show and leave the "family fun ships" entertainment for the night. One reason we chose Carnival this time was because they have the reputation of being a family ship. Well, if you call a 10 women in G- strings dancing on poles and using chairs in ways you can imagine a FAMILY show...we beg to differ. We asked the people at the front desk if this is what we could expect from here on out and the Head person there said, yes, "pretty much, take it or leave it". I was astonished at her apathetic response. The sad thing was that Carnival has a baby sitting program that they are responsible for taking care if YOUNG children in. GUESS WHO THEY GAVE THE FRONT 4 Rows to? YES THE ELEMENTARY KIDS! As for the children's programs... I don't know what to say to you there except... they basically consist of a few "coin operated" machines and games with no one much even in there. Our kids did not like any of the Kid zone stuff carnival raved about in their promotions. There wasn't a director that got the kids together or tried to make it fun for them. It was non existent and boring. So for the kids, they can either do nothing or watch porn! The ports of call were FANTASTIC! Belize was our favorite. DO THE TUBING AND ZIP LINE combination offered through shoretrips.com Much better deal for your money than what Carnival offers. We got to do the zip line, the cave tubing, and had a fantastic lunch all for 118.00. The best excursion we did. Also went to Grand Cayman. We snorkeled on our own right off from where the ship docked. IT was spectacular! No need to book an excursion. We also snorkeled in Costa Maya. It was nice too. Not our favorite port. Very commercialized but still a good day. We also went Clear Kayaking in Roatan and snorkeling. That was fun. We booked that through Carnival. It was crowded and our group was huge. Roatan was a wonderful place for buying souvenirs. We bought mahogany bowls and cups for our home. They are beautiful and they were just 30.00.

Cleanliness of ship: Well, let's just say there is room for improvement. My husband got the dreaded Noro Virus that they tell you about on their TV monitors. He said it was the worst he has ever felt in his entire life and he seriously thought he was going to die! We attribute it to their lack of cleanliness. Interesting enough is the fact that they charge you for EVERYTHING on that ship except they will give you FREE MEDICAL CARE AND FREE MEDICINE if you catch the noro virus. Sounds like they must have legal concerns regarding being the reason you got sick and then charging you to help you get better. OH! I forgot to mention....they will also QUARANTINE YOU FOR FREE... so you are confined to your cabin for the duration of your illness...which is WHEN THEY TELL YOU you can come out again. You know that awesome shore excursion in Belize? My husband missed it and Costa Maya. Well, I hate to sound so negative but it is the truth.The funny thing about this trip is that the staff was VERY friendly to us THE NIGHT BEFORE TIP TIME! Our cabin steward even said, for the first time..." I hope you are happy" I said why do you say that? " He said, because if you aren't happy, my family doesn't eat" Hmmm. Nothing like putting a guilt trip of the people you've been sarcastic to and offensive to all week right before payday. I think the staff on that ship thinks that because Carnival AUTOMATICALLY ADDS their full tip onto your bill that they don't have to earn it. Infact, Carnival states they do this for YOUR convenience! Yeah, right. They do however give you the option of waiting in the 2 hour long line the last night of your cruise while everyone else is watching the show if you would like to "adjust" your tip. We have NEVER not given the full tip PLUS more to our staff on the past cruises but simply couldn't in good conscience do it this time. One last thing, we found it very interesting that the cruise director gives a long description for people via the TV in each room, on how to fill out your comment cards. He explains how the cruise staff certainly met or exceeded your expectations. Then he clarifies, that IF you have cruised before you may have different expectations but don't let that stop you from putting met or exceeded on the the form! WHAT?! I couldn't believe it. What kind of standard are they shooting for? WHY did I take the time to recount this trip as painful as it was? TO SAVE YOU THE EXPERIENCE! Our advice... If you want a trip with loud, redneck drunks & smokers, luke warm food when you can get it, family porno shows and a staff that caters to no one...try the fun ship if that is your idea of good family fun! If you want to be treated with respect and enjoy a classy and exciting trip with staff that is second to none, try Royal Caribbean! Get out there!